What questions should Assistants ask at an interview?

So you’ve bagged a job interview, you’ve picked your outfit, you’ve researched the company and planned a few answers. You’ve made your way to the company building and have managed to get through all of the tricky questions. You think you’ve done well and might have got the job when the interviewer says to you ‘do you have any questions?’ Eeekkk! What questions should Assistants ask at an interview?

We all know this part of the interview will happen and we all know the questions not to ask, but how many of us ask the potential employer questions that will make them want to hire us and more importantly how many of us ask questions that result in us wanting to work at that company?

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When I go for a job interview I make sure that every aspect of the job has been covered. If the interviewer hasn’t discussed all of the details I need before I make a decision regarding the role I ensure I ask as much as I can during the ‘do you have any questions?’ stage of the process.

Here are a few questions that I think assistants should be asking during an interview if they have not been covered by the interviewer.

What questions should assistants ask at an interview?

The business

What is the company most proud of? What can be improved?

How does the company see itself changing in the next few years?

How do the company’s departments work together and how do the management team promote interaction?

What are the key issues facing the organisation at the moment and how does this affect the Assistant role?

Working with the boss

How do you like to work with your Assistant in terms of scheduling and email management?

How do you like to communicate with your Assistant?

Are you self-sufficient or do you prefer a more hands-on approach from your Assistant?

What are the biggest challenges and how can an Assistant help ease the workload?

Prospects

How much empathises is placed on career development within the company? Is there a budget for training?

Is there scope for additional responsibilities once the Assistant is established in the role?

Does the assistant have a six monthly and yearly job review and are objectives set each year?

What have previous Assistants in this role achieved and what are they doing now?

The culture

What advice would you give you to someone starting in the company?

What is the atmosphere like in the office?

Do you socialise much outside of the office and is the Assistant expected to organise team building occasions?

What do you enjoy about working here?

The role

When you reviewed my CV was there anything in particular you thought would complement the role?

What do you think are the hardest aspects of the role?

Which software packages are most often used in the role and will the Assistant have to learn any bespoke technology?

What does a typical day/week look like working in this role?

What personality type would be the ideal candidate for this role?

What does success look like within this role?

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